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.22 LR ammo - what do you use?

Hello,

I just bought a .22 pistol for target shooting and I was wondering what .22 LR ammo the members of this forum use for:
- sighting-in (match ammo?)
- basic target shooting

I'm not sure what more to ask on the subject. I bought the Winchester 36 grain hollow point rounds for my first time around with this gun. So far so good; no misfires. The last ammo that I used in another .22 was the CCL (I think) and I had a bunch of misfires. So, based on that experience, I think I will stay away from CCL.

I have a Walther P22 that is kind of finicky, so it only gets Mini Mags. For my other .22's, I go with the Federal bulk pack; it is inexpensive and meets my needs (punching paper and the occasional tree rat).

I would sight in with what you intend to shoot. No point in trying to use match grade .22 ammo if you are going to shoot cheapo crap. It will very likely print to a different POI.

Remington rimfire ammo sucks.

Aguilla is filthy, and often sucks.

Federal is pretty decent, though I have had some functioning issues with the bulk packs.

Winchester, pretty much the same experiences as with Federal.

Lapua is good, reliable, and very accurate. And you pay for it.

CCI, while you had a bad experience, is the standard by which I judge fodder rimfire ammo by. I use the HP Subs for suppressed shooting, and Mini-Mags for general plinking, and Stingers (or mini's) if there is a gun that is not getting enough power to cycle the action.

Everyone makes crap once in awhile, and I suspect that is the case with a bad batch of CCI. That is the exception, rather than the rule. It is at least worth another look.

Some argue that the CCI Mini's, Stingers, Subs, etc are expensive, defeating or minimizing the idea behind rimfire training. Yeah, they are a bit more expensive, but I buy in massive bulk, and the reliability they provide offsets my cost concerns. If you are serious about .22 rimfire training, plinking, varminting, whatever, it really is worthwhile to look at buying bulk. I buy 5-10k at a time, and the per box cost of CCI premium rimfire ends up comparable to commercial, retail prices of the el-cheapo crap from the local shop.

I love shooting CCI Stingers. I made a 1 hole group at 100 yards with those out of my Remington 552 Speedmaster. I've found CCI ammo to be superlative quality (for a .22).

Both my 552 and Mauser Es340b have been more accurate with CCI Stingers than anything else, including RWS Target and RWS Special Match.

I like their Long's as well.

I don't fixate too much on the price. Shooting the A-54 frame Ruger Mk1 or Mauser Es340b is waaaaay cheaper than 9mm out of the P2000 or 7.5 Swiss out of the K31, so I'm happy even with the price of Stingers.

"The history of the 20th century is largely people exchanging Freedom for "security" and "equality", then getting gulags, shortages, and oppression instead."- JoeinPNG

Anything in the 22/45. Likewise the GSG1911. S&W Outdoorsman... heh...
Cute little Wilson conversion kit runs best on CCI-Mini Mags. AA conversion kit feels the same way (although it's not nearly as reliable even with Mini-Mags as the Wilson kit.)

Only one long gun I own is any kind of finicky, an old Remmy Fieldmaster. It doesn't extract the cheap stuff reliably, so it gets fed Mini-Mags.

In a sort of ghastly simplicity we remove the organ and demand the function. We make men without chests and expect of them virtue and enterprise. We laugh at honour and are shocked to find traitors in our midst. We castrate and bid the geldings be fruitful.” ― C.S. Lewis, The Abolition of Man